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Wednesday, December 03, 2003

THE BAMBOO REVIEW: We're slowly sifting through a pile of email you wouldn't believe, and highlights will be coming in the next few days. First out the box is Becky Bamboo at the Sleepy Jackson and the Polyphonic Spree:

The last time I saw an accordion player at a rock show was Jump, Little Children. Until last night. The first opener was Corn Mo, a stoner-looking dude with long frizzy blond hair, the biggest sideburns I've seen and an accordion. He also had a drumstick stuck into the laces of his shoe so he could hit the cymbal on the floor. Yeah. Surprisingly, he was pretty entertaining, in a novelty act sort of way. It's impossible to make an accordion sound anything but jaunty and the songs reflected that sound, with lots of pop culture references and humor. I could totally see him opening for Tenacious D in the future.

The next band was The Sleepy Jackson, the real reason I went to the show. A few minutes before they came out I spotted a friend and went over to stand with him and preach the glory of the band. After their first song he turned to me and said, "Wow, they're really good!" Oh my, yes. Live, they add Sonic Youth style soundscapes that suddenly resolve into these amazing songs that are part Flaming Lips, part George Harrison, part Tom Petty, yet all their own. Looking like an odd amalgam of Herve Villechaize and an extra from Velvet Goldmine (shimmery scarf, Transformer cover Lou Reed t-shirt, black suit jacket), Luke Steele was on fire. He said next to nothing, just letting the songs blend into each other, momentum keeping the audience engaged. So, *so* good. And I say that even though they didn't play my two favorite songs off Lovers.

Despite having most of their instruments already set up, The Polyphonic Spree took forever to take the stage. You know the drill.. white choir robes, every instrument under the sun, choir, blah, blah. It was like a revival by way of a community theater production of Hair. Again, pretty entertaining in a novelty act way. The songs are pretty simplistic though, and virtually indistiguishable from each other so I don't really see myself getting too involved with them. I took off after about 45 minutes because 6 AM comes awfully early in the morning.